The U.S. Army has identified two of the three service members who were killed when their helicopter crashed into an American Airlines flight over the Potomac River. They were identified as Chief Warrant Officer 2 Andrew Loyd Eaves, 39, of Great Mills, Md., and Staff Sgt. Ryan Austin O’Hara, 28, of Lilburn, Ga. The third crew member, a female pilot with 500 hours of flying experience, was not named publicly at the request of her family.
The crash occurred on Wednesday when the helicopter collided with the American Airlines passenger jet carrying 64 people. The Army is withholding the identity of the female pilot, citing the family’s request for privacy. The investigation is ongoing, and officials have not yet released the cause of the crash.
The crash has sparked intense scrutiny online, with misinformation spreading quickly about the third crew member, including false claims that she was a transgender pilot from the Virginia National Guard. Illinois Democrat Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a decorated former Black Hawk pilot, condemned the online speculation and President Trump’s comments about the crash, saying that the crew was highly trained and that their identities should be respected.
Defense officials have stated that the helicopter was on a required annual night evaluation and had night vision goggles, but there are still many unanswered questions about the flight pattern of the helicopter and the nature of the training exercise. The National Transportation Safety Board has recovered the “black boxes” from the plane and is investigating the cause of the crash.
